Needy 328 owner
 

Hey all, ive tried different forums before but noone seemed to want to help. Been reading a bunch of threads here and you guys and gals seem to be pretty nice and helpful. Been having some problems with my 96 328ic and could use some help! I have done a lot of work on mine and would love to share what i have learned as well.

Just dropped a $grand at the dealer for 2 O2 sensors and a water pump, check engine light still comes on randomly, on 2 days off 2 days. If there were something wrong, wouldnt it, shouldnt it stay on all the time? The only thing i experience odd is that no matter how hot or cold it is, the car idles like a harley for about 20 seconds then smooths out to normal. Could i be needing the ICV cleaned as stated in an earlier thread? I would really appreciate any input.

Thanks in advance and i will post some pictures soon.

Rich

i doubt the ICV would need to be cleaned if it fixes itself after 20 seconds, thats not how the ICV works. It wouldnt magically work after 20 seconds, either its clogged or its not.

Do you experience stalling when you come to a stop, or does your car act like it wants to stop when you come to say a red light. Any engine mods?

And also a dirty icv doesn't throw a check engine light, but that would explain the rough idle.

I think you're best bet is when the CEL is on, stop by an Auto Zone. They loan out OBD2 code pullers for free. They can pop it on your car and in seconds tell you what is causing the CEL. If you give us the code/number it reads out, we'll tell you what it means and try to pinpoint what's causing the problem in your engine.

And welcome to United. :wave

check your mass airflow sensor, and basically anything that has to do with your air-fuel ratio, but the MAF is a big one. it might fix itself after 20 seconds because the engine gets warmer and when it gets warmer there is a different fuel ratio involved

also, did you get your car washed recently? or was your car exposed to water at all, make sure your DME/ECU(the computer) didnt get wet, and if it didnt, maybe your spark plugs got wet..

hope that was of help

PS: to bypass your mass airflow sensor, i dont know which to pins exactly, i did it before, but disconnect it, and take the connector and put a paperclip that connects 2 pins.. but just to test if it is the problem, unplug it completely and see if it helps(unplug it, dont remove it)

I thought of that also because e36's have a known issue with fitment of the windshield washer fluid jets, and if water gets in there it drops directly on top of the ecu, easily frying it. However he said he's replaced his ecu 3 times before, so I'm thinking it's probably something else.

oh, where did he say he replaces his ecu? i missed that, but when he replaced them after the first time, did it work again?

i do have a cone filter and the exhaust is aftermarket. the exhaust is not a cheap one. the only time the car idles rough is when it is started, runs great after 20 seconds or so but man is it rough at first start. maybe should go back to factory air box and M3 exhaust possibly?

This sound like either a loose gas cap, a problematic Mass Air Flow sensor, or a fuel sending problem. My Gfs car is going through the same problems right now, I pretty much narrowed it down to a bad MAF.

thanks komodo, i did not know they had the OBDII readers there. thanks for the welcome as well!

Also a dying battery would cause it believe it or not. Your ICV and other component's including the MAF have a 12 volt going into them from the battery. A weak battery which is losing a charge after sitting for a while would cause your equipment like the ICV to not power up properly right away. Don't believe me? Unplug your battery and plug it back in and I guarantee your idle will be weird. This is because the ICV and MAF take time to adjust. This goes for everyone with an e36 :P

i will check the plugs this weekend, time consuming on this car. I opened the dme before and the compartment was dry. if it was wet, is the dme ruined?

I shimmed the gas cap out with another gasket, wasnt sealing tight, CEL went out for a few days. I am thinking it is the MAF, but you brought up another point about the battery. My car sat for a year and the battery died a few times, still works fine as far as starting goes.

I've heard/seen DME's get flooded and still work after being dryed. This doesn't sound like a DME problem to me.

I'd see if you could find someone else who has an OBD2 car 96+ and take off their MAF and see what happens. But I would have your battery checked out. I changed mine out last summer, and let me tell you, everything seemed to run much better. Idling was great and almost seemed to have a little more power (probably in my head). Good luck man and keep us updated...

Oh and if it is your MAF, get a HFM. Cheaper then replacing the MAF with a new one and might add a few ponies.

I really appreciate your input! Im feeling less dire about this. Do you recommend a certain brand HFM?

umm I think they're all bosch.. you can find used ones on ebay in working order. They come from v8 5/7 series cars and Euro cars also have them. Not that I want to promote for another site, but bimmerforums.com's classifieds have those parts ALWAYS for sale for around 150 usually.